major support for frontline is provided by the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. more information is available at macfound.org. additional funding is provided by the park foundation, dedicated to heightening public awareness of critical issues. and by the frontline journalism fund, supporting instigive porting and enterprise journalism. additional funding for this program is provided by: >> michelle rhee's journey to national prominence began in 2007. washington dc had just inaugurated a new mayor, adrian fenty. he had won a landslide election and promised to fix the district's abysmal school system. >> the lack of real opportunity for young people drives our unemployment rate, it drives our crime rate, and we can't have that. this is the nation's capitol of the united states of america. we shouldn't have the worst school system. we should have the best. >> are you ready? all right. >> almost everyone expected fenty to choose a seasoned veteran to turn the schools around, but he c